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Custom Travel Services

Helping couples and families design unforgettable vacations.
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Travel with a purpose

Why we do what we do

We believe family vacations provide a unique opportunity to deeply connect and create lasting memories with loved ones while exploring new surroundings and immersing yourself in inspiring locations. Our personalized service takes away the overwhelm and stress of planning travel. Clients who have never used a travel agent before often tell us, “I’ll never travel again without your help!”

What we can do for you

When you work with Dream Travel By Design, you get personalized, custom service with a human touch. We help couples, families, and groups create their dream vacations. Whether you’re looking for a detailed two week European vacation, a river cruise, an Alaskan getaway, a luxury ocean cruise, or a stay at an all-inclusive resort, we will help you make your dream vacation a reality. That’s why we say, “You dream it. We design it.”

Air, Lodging, Car/Train

Just need to book flights, accommodations, and transportation? We’ve got you covered! Whether you’re staying in one location or multiple, and whether you need a rental car, private transfers, or train tickets, we can handle it all. Plus, we can assist with excursions, tours, shows, events, and travel insurance to ensure a seamless experience.

All-Inclusive Resort Packages

All-inclusive resorts are popular for allowing you to better budget your trip up front and for the most part, not having to take out your wallet during travel. We partner with all the best resorts throughout Mexico and the Caribbean to make your stay as enjoyable as possible. Of course, we can also arrange your air, transfers to and from the resort, excursions, upgrades, travel insurance and more!

Ocean, River & Expedition Cruising

Cruising is back in a big way! Whether you’re seeking an ocean cruise to Alaska, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, an expedition to Antarctica, or a river cruise through Europe, our team will match you with the ideal cruise line, itinerary, and stateroom. Our cruise service also includes pre/post-cruise travel, air, transfers, excursions, travel insurance, and more!

Groups

Planning a trip with your extended family, friends, or a group from your church or school? We specialize in simplifying the complexities of group travel, allowing you to focus on enjoying your time together without the stress of logistics. Whether you’re looking to book a resort stay, cruise, or traditional or private guided tour, we’re here to help make your group travel experience seamless and enjoyable.

Ready to start planning?

Schedule a complimentary consultation call today!

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Our Client-Focused Process

Planning your vacation with Dream Travel By Design is a simple process. The heart of that process is the complimentary consultation where we gather all the information we need to fully understand your needs, wishes, and dreams around your trip so we can propose incredibly personalized options that are perfect for you and your family!

01. Connect With Us

We believe in personalized vacations, which is why we start with a complimentary consultation. During this initial meeting—preferably via Zoom, but we can also schedule a phone call if you prefer—we’ll get to know you and your family by asking questions about your unique travel style and preferences.

02. Receive a Proposal

After we agree to work together and we receive our professional planning services fee, we’ll create a tailored proposal for your trip. We’ll provide multiple options whenever possible, and if the initial proposal isn’t quite right, we’re happy to make adjustments.
*Professional planning fees start at $99

03. Book & Travel

Once your itinerary is finalized, we’ll work with our travel partners to book each aspect of your trip, including accommodations, airfare, transfers, excursions, tours and more. We’ll give you a detailed itinerary, and in most cases a travel app to use during travel as well as a packing list and other helpful information. We and our in-destination travel partners will be with you from initial consultation to when you get back from your trip and beyond.

kind words

Kate is incredible. She is detail oriented and goes way above and beyond for her clients! She planned our honeymoon to Italy and we just got the pleasure of enjoying It! The task we gave her of all the places we wanted to see in the amount of time we had was NOT easy. I know she put in so many hours and hard work to give us the perfect itinerary! I would recommend her and Dream Travel to anyone and everyone! Talented team of travel planners and the trip couldn’t have gone better! Even when we had an issue with weather delays, Kate was on top of it checking in with us and helped us with the insurance of the trip which came in handy for the little bit of time we were delayed. I cannot say enough about how incredibly impressed we are with Kate’s work and what a beautiful trip she put together with our dream Italy honeymoon! We went to Venice, Rome, Florence, and the Amalfi coast (Positano) and she got us beautiful hotels, easy transfers, and perfectly timed flights to and from Italy!

Mirit

Italy

Expert travel planning services you can trust.

Our professional service helps busy families, who feel overwhelmed by the vast amount of options available for planning a vacation, experience fully-personalized luxury travel planning services that take the stress out of vacation planning.

Unlike other luxury travel planning agencies, our services prioritize designing unique opportunities for you to deeply connect and create lasting memories with your loved ones. We will be with you before, during and after your vacation because we truly want to be your best friend in travel.

explore destinations

Explore our destination specialties:

Alaska
Cruises
EUROPE
All-Inclusives

About Us

Thanks for stopping by!

Hello! We are Kate and Jeff, owners of Dream Travel By Design, a boutique luxury travel agency in Stillwater, Minnesota. We’re so glad you found us! Our passion is helping busy and overwhelmed families see our beautiful world and make life-long memories with those they love. We are continuously striving to make our already world-class service even better for our clients. Like our many loyal clients, we’d be honored to become your trusted friends in travel.
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kind words
This is my second time working with Kate and the service was once again 5 stars! We traveled out of the country and she was there to help us as soon as we landed when we had questions.

David B.

Mexico

Frequently Asked Questions

Can’t I just book online myself?

Absolutely, you can book your trip online. However, by doing so, you may miss out on our expert advice, valuable tips, and access to special perks and discounts. Our personalized support extends before, during, and after your trip, ensuring a smoother experience. Just like you could handle tasks like changing your own oil or doing your taxes, hiring a professional brings peace of mind, expertise, and significant time savings. Let us take care of the details so you can focus on enjoying your journey!

What's the difference between a travel advisor and a travel agent?
The terms travel advisor, travel agent, and travel professional are used interchangeably in our industry. However we prefer the titles of travel advisor or travel professional, since we do far more than just book your travel!
How do you get paid?

Some travel suppliers pay us a commission for bookings, while others do not. Regardless, your costs for those suppliers remain the same whether you book directly with them or through us. Since some suppliers offer little or no commission, and considering our expertise, and the time involved in researching, proposing, and booking your trip—especially if changes arise—our professional planning packages come with a modest charge. We believe that the personalized, expert service we provide, along with the insights, savings and perks we can offer, makes our packages more than worthwhile.

How far in advance should we book our vacation?

This varies depending on the type of vacation, the destination, and whether you are traveling during on or off-peak season. Generally speaking, to have the best selection AND price, plan to book 6-12 months in advance (further out for some Alaska cruises and river cruises.)

Can we meet you in-person?

Absolutely! As a home-based online travel agency, we welcome clients from around the United States. But if you happen to live near Stillwater, MN, we often meet with clients at a local coffee shop or restaurant to go over trip details.

Why is Dream Travel By Design an expert in river cruise travel?

We pride ourselves on staying certified with industry-leading river cruise suppliers, including AmaWaterways, Avalon, Riverside Luxury Cruises, and Viking so that we can offer you the best possible options. Not only do we river cruise ourselves, but we attend national and world conferences to stay up on all the latest trends and offerings.

What's the best way to visit Alaska?

This will vary by client, but we personally love combining an ocean cruise with a land tour (often called a cruisetour) to get the best of Alaksa by land and sea. But some clients would rather stay in one or two locations and spend their whole vacation hiking or fishing, and others might enjoy just a cruise that gives them the highlights like whale-watching and glacier-viewing. We will help you determine the best option for you.

Ready to start making your dream vacation a reality?

Schedule a complimentary consultation call today!

book a call